[HPforGrownups] House points and Dumbledore

[Maria Kirilenko]

No: HPFGUIDX 51066


bboy_mn:

Perspective-

Playing a trick on Draco (from McGonagall's perspective) and being out
after curfew. MINUS 50 points each (Harry, Hermione, Neville = -150)

Ron-
<snip>
Oh sure, that seems fair, out of bed MINUS 50 points, sacrifice your
life for the greater good, show courage, bravery, selfsacrifice and
heroism beyond what most adult wizards could muster; PLUS 50 points.


Hermione-
<snip>
Summary-
Out of bed after hours and assumed to be in on playing a joke on Draco. 

MINUS 50 points.

Loyalty, courage and bravery equaled by very very few, logic and
intellect of genius caliber. A selfless effort for the greater good,
and an unyeilding desire to what is right rather than what is correct. 

PLUS 50 points.


Harry-
<snip>
PLUS 60 points

For his willingness to sacrifice his life, for nerve, courage,
nobility, and bravery, for daring to face a force of evil so strong
that most wizards won't even speak it's name, for having the moral
fiber to put the good of the world above his own life, for being an
eleven year old boy with a heart and soul greater than most living
wizards, for all this....

PLUS 60 points?????

And people think Dumbledore was being overly generous? Slytherin won a
few Quidditch matchs and answered a few questions in class, Harry
Potter sacrificed his own life to save the wizard world from a great
force of evil, and he did so with no desire for or expectation of a
reward.
<snip>

No, I think Dumbledore greatly restrained himself. 200 or 500 points
each would have been more like it when you consider the magnitude of
what three 11 year olds were able to accomplish. Along side this, what
did any of the other houses accomplish? He gave them the bare minimum
points to equal a tie for the cup, then gave poor Neville who had
never so much as won a single point, the decisive points to assure an
EXTEMELY MODEST victory. One that was well earned in view of their
nearly impossible achievement.

Sorry, but you will never convince me that evil Dumbledore snatch an
undeserved victory from the hands of the poor hard working deserving
Slytherins and gave it to Gryffindor. They deserves three times the
point that he awarded them, but he chose to be very modest about it.


Me:

Your analysis is very intimidating. <g>

But all this makes me wonder what exactly House points are awarded for. We know they're taken away for breaking rules (or just bothering Snape <g>). 

When I first started reading PS, I assumed that the whole thing was academic. Instead of grades, they receive House points.

But I am not sure it's wise to compare academic success to the displays of courage, bravery, etc (you list 'em in full). Tom Riddle got a trophy (or whatever that was, my memory has just stopped functioning) for exposing the Heir of Slytherin, so why not do the same for HHR&N? But instead, Dumbledore just jumbles it all together with rewards for good behavior and good grades.

This is what I do not like in Dumbledore's actions at the end of PS. 

He *ignores* all the hard work Slytherin (or whatever House) did throughout the whole year. Would it have been so hard for him to *both* give Slytherin the deserved House Cup and honor the kids for doing something that IMHO cannot and should not be measured in the same points that academics are? I think not.

And, you know, Hogwarts is a *school*. Whatever the political/Voldemortical situation in the WW is, the purpose of Hogwarts is to educate kids, and evaluate their efforts and successes. 

With the education part, Dumbledore is good. With the evaluation part, he is mistaken, IMO. 

And whatever HHR's accomplishments in the obstacle course are (and I totally agree with you on those), awarding them just enough points for them to win the Cup is sending a bad message to other students - like, "whatever work you do and no matter how much you obey the rules, it won't matter." 

I stick with what I've said before - it's demoralizing forthe students and the staff, who abuse their rights of awarding and subtracting points anyway.

Maria



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